Cool Tools for Schools
Web 2.0 Media for the 21st Century

Thinking Tools:

Samorost 1

Picture_171.png

Walk through an alien space ship and work out how to make it change its course.

Samorost 2

Picture_172.png

Sequel to Samorost 1

Machinarium

_creative.png

An independent puzzle / adventure game developed by the makers of popular web-games Samorost and Samorost2.

Questionaut

Picture_173.png

external image t.gif

Journey through strange worlds and test your knowledge of English, Maths and Science on this magical mission to recover your friend’s hat.

Invention at Play

invention.png

Thinking games and puzzles.

Solvr

[[image:cooltoolsforschools/a.freshbrain.com:solvr:.png caption="a.freshbrain.com:solvr:.png"]]

a.freshbrain.com:solvr:.png

Solve your problems step-by-step

Diffen

diffen.png

Compare, contrast and find the difference between any two things.

Puzzles4You

puzzles4you.blogspot.com_criticalthinking.png

Critical thinking puzzles

Games:

Picture_140.png

Create free educational games, activities and diagrams in a Flash!

Host them on your own blog, website or intranet!

MagicPen

magicpen.png

A physics-based drawing game inspired by Crayon Physics. Guide the red ball or square to the flags by drawing shapes and dropping them.

Braingle

braingle.png

Brain Teasers, Riddles, Trivia, Brain Exercises, Games, Forums and more...

Iminlikewithyou

iminlikewithyou.png

A lot of games including jigsawce, dinglepop, blockers, tracism and a really great one called draw my thing which is like online Pictionary.

SecretBuilders

secretbuilders.png

Quests, games, activities.

PlayAuditorium

playauditorium.png

Maths and problem solving game

FantasticContraption

fantsticcontraption.png

Physics puzzle game

The Lure of the Labyrinth

index.php.png

A digital game for middle-school pre-algebra students. It includes a wealth of intriguing math-based puzzles wrapped into an exciting narrative game in which students work to find their lost pet - and save the world from monsters.

Simulators:

Golems

[[image:cooltoolsforschools/golemgame.com:index.html.png caption="golemgame.com:index.html.png"]]

golemgame.com:index.html.png

3D Physics and Artificial Intelligence simulator. Build anything at all, turn on physics, and watch it go. Add hinges, motors, hydraulics, joints. Make your machine smart. Give it a brain, give it sensors, timers, switches, buttons.

Lego Digital Designer

default.aspx.png

Download the programme that lets you build with LEGO bricks on your computer.

Classroom Activities:

Classroom Architect

architect.png

Outline your classroom floor plan. This tool provides an opportunity for experimentation with the layout of your classroom without any heavy lifting

Edheads

Picture_204.png

High quality, free educational activities for your classroom. Conduct an operation or explore simple
machines, plus more.

Eyeballing

eyeballing.png

A series of geometries that need to be adjusted a little bit to make them right. A square highlights the point that needs to be moved or adjusted. Use the mouse to drag the blue square or arrowhead where you feel it is 'right'. Once you let go of the mouse, the computer evaluates your move.

Bomomo

bonomo.png

Creative art work

example

Blender

blender.org.png

Free open source 3D content creation suite, available for all major operating systems - model • shade • animate • render • composite • interactive 3d

PsykoPaint

psykopaint.png

A photo painting tool which uses the colors of an image to paint creative works of art

SculptyPaint

[[image:cooltoolsforschools/xs4all.nl:~elout:sculptpaint:.png caption="xs4all.nl:~elout:sculptpaint:.png"]]

xs4all.nl:~elout:sculptpaint:.png

A low polygon 3D creation tool original written for creating sculpts; 3D low polygon models for SecondLife. But currently it can also export to .obj files that can be read in Blender, wings3D etc.

LiveBrush

_drawing.png

Free download. Easy-to-use brush tool that reacts to your gesture by combining simple motion controls with brush styles. Toss graphics around the screen or elegantly swing the brush around your cursor.

Yourfonts

yourfonts.png

Online font generation service that allows you to create your own fonts within a couple of minutes. Your own handwriting turned into your own font. Use your fonts on Windows, Mac OS X and Linux. Personalize your digital scrapbook pages. Make your own "family handwriting history. Make as many fonts as you like.

FlipText

en.fliptext.net.png

Write upside down.

Robert Sabuda Popups

[[image:cooltoolsforschools/robertsabuda.com:popmakesimple.asp.png caption="robertsabuda.com:popmakesimple.asp.png"]]

robertsabuda.com:popmakesimple.asp.png

Making pop-ups for cards and crafts.

Place Spotting

Picture_147.png

Use Google
Earth to find places in the world. Create your own quiz.

ArSights

arsights.png

Watch Google™ Earth models on your desktop. Download and Install ARSights
Download and print the Marker. Browse our GE Network Link and choose a 3D model. Download the 3D model and run the application

CB Model Pro

cbmodlepro.png

3D modelling download.

What2Learn

what2learn.png

Interactive learning solution which provides effective educational resources and revision games. A great tool for students with learning difficulties and literacy difficulties. It is also a great resource for students looking to work independently to get ahead.

Adventure Island

[[image:cooltoolsforschools/kidsonthenet.org.uk:adventureisland.png caption="kidsonthenet.org.uk:adventureisland.png"]]

kidsonthenet.org.uk:adventureisland.png

Explore the island and complete the tasks, or create your own island.

PaperCritters

papercritters.png

Online application for the creation and storing of digital paper toys.

Animations:

Go Animate

goanimate.png

Create and share animations in minutes

GoAnimate4Schools

goanimati4schools.png

Access your own private and secured school environment. Have complete control using the moderation interface. Upload pictures, add voices. Teachers and students can animate versions of themselves and create other characters according to professions, historical figures or celebrities.

Clay Animator

clayanimator.com.png

Create your own claymation or stop motion animations.

Samanimation

samanimation.png

SAM Animation is software designed to give students the power of making stop-action animations to share their ideas and understanding. The environment provides a unique experience for students to grapple with challenging problems in mathematics, science, engineering, and more as they engage in the process of generating animations.

tutorial

Fluxtime

fluxtime.png

Create your own animation, save it to your webspace, share and reuse artwork, collaborate with others, show your animation

Animata

animata.kibu.hu.png

An open source real-time animation software, designed to create animations, interactive background projections for concerts, theatre and dance performances.

Aniboom

[[image:cooltoolsforschools/aniboom.com:ShapeshifterAnimachine.aspx.png caption="aniboom.com:ShapeshifterAnimachine.aspx.png"]]

aniboom.com:ShapeshifterAnimachine.aspx.png

Create frame by frame animations using only 4 geometric shapes. Or create animation using your webcam and embed as a widget.

Create own games and applications:

Sharendipity

sharendipity.png

Web based creativity suite where anyone can build and deploy engaging and interactive web applications. Create custom tools to learn, explore, and collaborate. No coding is necessary to create these games or activities and they can be embedded in websites.

Scratch

scratch.mit.edu.png

Free download, a new programming language that makes it easy to create your own interactive stories, animations, games, music and art, and share your creations on the web. Learn important mathematical and computational ideas, while also learning to think creatively, reason systematically, and work collaboratively.

Atmosphir

atmosphir.png

Free video game / creation tool for Mac & PC. Design mode lets you create enormous 3D platforming levels filled with fun gameplay elements like power-ups and fireballs, while Play mode lets you explore through the thousands of diverse user-created challenges being uploaded every day.

PlayCrafter

[[image:cooltoolsforschools/playcrafter.com:#destination=WelcomeCenter.png caption="playcrafter.com:#destination=WelcomeCenter.png"]]

playcrafter.com:#destination=WelcomeCenter.png

Create your own games.

Kodu

kodu.png

Creative environment for designing, building, and playing your own new games. The language is simple and entirely icon-based. Programs are composed of pages, which are broken down into rules, which are further divided into conditions and actions. PC only.

Gamemaker

gamemaker.png

Make exciting computer games, without the need to write a single line of code. Using easy to learn drag-and-drop actions, you can create professional looking games within very little time. Free lite version for PC, not free for Mac.

Sploder